Rocker type switches, comprising for example, a rocker element operatively connected to a substantially U-shaped contactor having a hairpin configuration, are of course well known in the art and are exemplified by means of the rocker switches disclosed within U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,293,018, 4,982,061, 4,272,662, 3,879,592, 3,749,872, and 3,670,121. In a similar manner, electrical connectors having a vertical and horizontal array of 90.degree. angled terminals and adapted to be connected to and mounted upon a printed circuit board (PCB) are likewise well known in the art and are exemplified by means of U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,676,554, 5,639,250, 5,482,470, 5,366,381, 5,236,375, 5,173,161, and 3,493,916.
It is also desirable in the art of fabricating printed circuit boards and the circuits disposed thereon to operatively associate or connect a suitable switch mechanism to the various electrical connectors mounted upon the printed circuit board in order to control electrical power to the various circuits of the printed circuit board. However, the operative association of such a power switch with the electrical connectors and printed circuits of the pointed circuit board has heretofore or conventionally only been achieved through the provision of, for example, the particular electrical connector, which is mounted upon the printed circuit board, and the electrical switch, as two separate elements, devices, units, or entities. More particularly, the electrical switch is usually mounted upon a suitable bracket and then operatively connected, by suitable electrical wiring, to the electrical connector which, in turn, is electrically connected to the printed circuits of the printed circuit board (PCB) as a result of the electrical connector being mounted upon the printed circuit board whereby end portions of the terminals of the electrical connector are electrically engaged with or connected to the printed circuits of the printed circuit board.
The provision of electrical power switches and electrical connectors, operatively associated with, for example, printed circuit boards (PCBs), as separate or discrete entities, elements, or devices however, is simply not economical or cost-efficient from a manufacturing and/or assembly point of view for several reasons. Firstly, the electrical connectors and the power switches must be separately manufactured. Secondly, the electrical connectors and power switches must be separately inventoried and distributed to suppliers and end users, that is, manufacturers, for example, who will use such elements or devices in connection with the manufacture of various electrical systems or components. Thirdly, when such end user manufacturers incorporate such electrical connector and power switch elements within the manufactured systems or components, the connectors and switches must be separately mounted upon their respective support members and then electrically connected together. All of these assembly operations are necessarily labor-intensive and time-consuming.
A need therefore exists in the art for a combination, one-piece integral electrical connector and rocker type power switch module wherein the manufacturing process or operation for such a module is substantially simplified relative to the manufacture of the electrical connectors and power switches as separate elements or devices, wherein the inventory and supply of such connector and switch modules or parts is likewise simplified and more cost-efficient, and wherein the manufacture of electrical systems and components employing such electrical connector and power switch elements, devices, or modules is necessarily simplified and more cost-effective.